Review: My Boyfriend Merlin by Priya Ardis

In
this modern Arthurian, 17-year-old nice girl Arriane, aka Ryan, DuLac
just found out her badass biker boyfriend, Matt, is a little older than
he was letting on. By a few eons.

In fact, he is really
Merlin--the Merlin, King Arthur's Merlin, the greatest wizard who ever
lived. But Ryan's not impressed. Tired of being a relationship loser,
she'd rather kick his legendary behind.

Sure, the world has been
crazy ever since the sword and the stone fell out of the sky like a
meteor. But despite gruesome gargoyles, a new world of magic, and the
guy driving her crazy, Ryan knows that family is everything. Will Merlin
sacrifice hers to save the world? Will she be able to stop him?

Review:

Hey, I'm English so I absolutely embrace anything anyone writes about mythology whether its Robin Hood, Boadicea, Saxons, Druids, Pagans, or King Arthur. Those are the stories we grew up with at school and at home. There isn't a time when you see pictures of Cornwall or Glastonbury and you don't think of King Arthur.

When I started My Boyfriend Merlin I was intrigued from the start. Was this another book trying to re-write history? Seemingly not! Priya Ardis has written something unique and while yes, the basics of the Sword in the Stone tale are there, the story itself has a new fresh twist.

Beginning in Boston USA, Arriane (aka Ryan), a newly almost-adopted member of the Ragnar family, is the President of her school Prom Committee and walks firmly with an organiser in her hand at all times. She's not your usual President you read about but she's popular enough. Pretty, and self-assured, she has a conscience to do the right thing and since her mother’s death, family means everything to her. The story starts as she receives a text in class from Matt Emrys (the surname gave it away for me!) Matt dropped her hard after a couple of dates but she still has feelings for him even though she wishes she didn't. The events that follow immediately after bring in the story of the Stone. A Total Tremor erupts around the world and a mysterious sword in a black rock appears out of nowhere in Trafalgar Square, London. The whole world felt the tremor as an earthquake. Now the whole world knows about the stone as TV pictures are beamed around the globe. In her classroom all eyes turn to Matt when a TV interview reveals he has a doppelganger posing as an expert of Arthurian Legends and the mystery surrounding the stone's arrival. Dr. Vivane Northe not only looks like Matt but also shares his mannerisms.

From here on in the pace of the story doesn't stop. Ryan's life is in danger, evil Gargoyles posing as people she knows want her dead. Matt comes to her rescue and takes her and Grey (her adopted brother) away to England. Matt’s been searching for Candidates, and Ryan and Grey with a few others have been chosen. The quest? To be ready and able to pull the sword from the stone and ultimately save mankind. The Gargoyles want total world domination and if they get the sword first nothing will be the same again.

But to be ready to pull the sword Ryan and Grey are taken to the Avalon Preparatory Academy. A wizard school. The introductions with the some interesting teachers are made and one especially. Dr. Vivane Northe, known as Vane, is actually Matt’s twin brother. Everything about him feels off to Ryan. His attitude and his snarky comments fuel her fire and soon they are at loggerheads. Matt keeps up his cool demeanour but continues to push Ryan aside even when it’s obvious they both share feelings for one another. But Vane picks up on this early on and uses it against them.

The adventure continues at the school as Ryan's skill-set grows and it isn't always good. Vane's own candidates give Ryan a hard time and one of them is a traitor, almost causing the death of Ryan's on-off friend/enemy Gia.

The tables turn back and forth in this wonderfully absorbing tale. One minute you actually forget you're reading about THE Merlin and are just enjoying the thrill ride of a YA book. I found the characters and the story very addictive, so much that it was impossible to put this one down until the early hours of the morning.

I loved the balance shift between good guy and bad guy with Matt and Vane. They took turns at each at various parts in the story. Ryan was more enjoyable as I read more into the book and I'm now more than intrigued about her earlier relationship with Matt. Grey and Gia are an exciting combination as back-up side-kicks with attitude on both sides.

In the end I was thoroughly surprised and almost giddy at how much I enjoyed this fantastic new book based on an old story. I'm now looking forward to reading My Merlin Awakening which is now out and available at Barnes and Noble.

-CBx

About Priya Ardis I love books of all kinds—but
especially the gooey ones that make your nose leak and let your latte go
cold. My writing comes from a childhood of playing too much She-Ra and
watching too much Spock and reading way too much fairy-tales, fantasies,
detective stories, romances... the list goes on. (When Belle gasped at
the library the Beast gave her, so did I! Color me with library envy.) I
started penning my first book at sixteen, writing in long notebooks on
train rides in India. A hopeless romantic, I'm also a longtime member of
RWA (Romance Writer's of America).